ARRL Letter

***************
The ARRL Letter
Vol. 27, No. 27
July 11, 2008
***************
IN THIS EDITION:
* + Sacramento Valley Area Hams Respond when Fires Sweep across Northern
California
* + ARRL Teachers Institutes Near Halfway Point for 2008
* + "The Doctor Is IN" The ARRL Letter
* + The July/August QEX Is Here
* + Kansas Teen Named 2008 Young Ham of the Year
* + Two New Coordinators Appointed in IARU Region 2
* Solar Update
* IN BRIEF:
This Weekend on the Radio
ARRL Continuing Education Course Registration
+ No ARRL Audio News July 25
+ International Space Station Goes Live with ARISS
Field Day Fun at W1AW
IARU Member Societies On-The-Air for IARU HF World Championship
+Available on ARRL Audio News <http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/audio/>
===========================================================
==>Delivery problems: First see FAQ
<http://www.arrl.org/members-only/faq.html#nodelivery>, then e-mail
<letter-dlvy@arrl.org&gt;
==>Editorial questions or comments only: S. Khrystyne Keane,
<k1sfa@arrl.org&gt;
===========================================================
==> SACRAMENTO VALLEY AREA HAMS RESPOND WHEN FIRES SWEEP ACROSS NORTHERN
CALIFORNIA
With the California fires showing little signs of abating, ARRL
Sacramento Valley Section Manager Ron Murdock, W6KJ, says that ARES
members in his Section are actively involved in supporting the agencies
they serve. According to California Department of Forestry and Fire
Protection (CAL FIRE), more than 330 fires covering almost 200,000 acres
are active in the Sacramento Valley Section. While most fires are at
least 50 percent contained, some are less than 30 percent under control.
According to Murdock, too little rainfall over the winter and hot, dry
winds contributed to the fires' fast spread. Due to the weather
conditions, ARRL Sacramento Valley Section Emergency Coordinator Richard
Cloyd, WO6P, put ARES leadership on a standby alert in early June. "On
June 11, a fire started that eventually consumed 24,000 acres," said
Murdock. This fire, called the Humboldt Fire, burned for almost one
week. "At mid-June, our wildlands -- so full of tinder dry fuel -- began
to burn. Fire threatened the City of Paradise in Butte County for
several days. Paradise doesn't have many evacuation routes, so when
people returned to their homes, they had a new appreciation for
evacuation plans." According to CAL FIRE Public Information Officer Mary
Ann Aldrich, no cause has been determined for this fire which destroyed
74 residences and damaged 20.
The high winds soon dissipated, but then dry thunderstorms -- storms
with very little rain but lots of lightning strikes -- made their way to
the area. "First we heard of over 400, then 800, then over 1000 wildland
fires. People in other mountain communities were advised, and then
directed, to evacuate their homes and seek shelters set up by the Red
Cross," Murdock said.
With activation requests from both the Paradise Emergency Operations
Center and the American Red Cross, Butte County Emergency Coordinator
Steve Kaps, N6NPN, opened the ARES net on the Golden Empire ARS W6RHC
Repeater. Murdock said that it was opened first as a precautionary
measure, but as the shelters opened, help was needed. Paradise residents
Chuck Orgovan, KF6YKQ, and Anna Horn, KG6ZOA, manned the shelter at a
local school. "The W6RHC repeater did not have good coverage in the
shelter area, so we relayed communications between the shelter and Kaps
(who was running the Net Control Station) via the Sutter County WD6AXM
repeater and we were able to make things work. Placing a better antenna
at the shelter seemed to help for a while, but eventually operations
shifted entirely to the WD6AXM repeater," Murdock said.
Cloyd relayed information to Murdock that shelters in other parts of the
area were being opened: "I told Red Cross in Yuba City. They realized
they did not know where and when these other shelters were opening. We
then opened KG6WGQ -- the club station at the Three Rivers Chapter of
the American Red Cross in Yuba City -- so that we had a better chance of
communicating with the multiple outlying shelters. Since the station was
to be open when the ARC response group was operating, we had to work in
shifts, so we went to three 5 hour shifts per day for a week. At one
point, Ken Miller, KF6JRE, volunteered to take a shift in Yuba City from
his home in West Sacramento."
A radio and power supply at KG6WGQ had to be replaced; luckily, Herb
Puckett, W6HBU, had an extra one in his go-kit. Paul Johnson, N6XVL,
developed a list of volunteers to staff all the shifts for the Red Cross
operation. "We were in the process of scheduling relief for Butte County
operators on the evening of June 27, when the Red Cross decided to move
from Yuba City to Chico to better use the resources they had in place,"
Murdock said. "At that point, further Net operation by ARES was not
needed and so it was suspended for the weekend." On Monday morning June
30, fire suppression efforts were making headway and most of the
sheltered population was allowed to return home.
On Sunday, June 29, Yuba/Sutter Emergency Coordinator Art Craigmill,
K6ALC, heard a fire call on his scanner. "The location was nearby so he
gathered his equipment and went to check on the situation," Murdock
said. "On his way there, he saw another fire -- this one at a home
construction site -- and notified the incident commander." Craigmill
took action to stop the spread of this new fire. "Thankfully, the home
had water pressure, and this aided Art in his firefighting efforts until
the engine company arrived to put it out."
Throughout the Sacramento Valley Section and beyond, smoke from wild
fires dangerously contaminated the air with particulate matter. "The air
stank of smoke and things burned. With air quality values as bad as we
have seen them in 25 years, many clubs in the section had to cancel
their Field Day operations," Murdock said. "First to do so was the
Nevada County Amateur Radio Club. Not only did they not get to do Field
Day, but their site -- the Nevada County Fairgrounds -- was used as a
fire fighting staging area." The Golden Empire Amateur Radio Society in
Chico and the Yuba-Sutter Amateur Radio Club also cancelled their
respective Field Day operations, due to poor air quality. Murdock said
that both clubs had many members who manned ARES shifts during this
emergency.
The Oroville Amateur Radio Society had many operators involved in the
shelter operation. Bill Cross, K6DYT, volunteered as an animal shelter
worker. Virginia Paschke, KI6COL, deployed to Butte County from her home
in Sutter County, also helped out at the animal shelter. According to
Murdock, Paschke got her Amateur Radio license last year for this very
reason: The domestic animal rescue group provides assurance for people
who need to evacuate that they can do so without leaving their pets
behind. It speeds the evacuation process and keeps people from getting
into more dangerous situations.
CAL FIRE's Aldrich said that this fire complex originally had many
fires: "We started with 38, but 15 of the fires merged together so now
we are down to 11 fires covering 27,600 acres." She said that lightning
caused these fires. Two residences have been destroyed so far by fires
in this cluster.
Murdock said that many of the clubs that held a Field Day event could
see a slight clearing of the thick smoke that plagued more northern
locations: "It serves as a reminder that fires remain burning and that
we should all remain ready for the next phase of this emergency."
==> ARRL TEACHERS INSTITUTES NEAR HALFWAY POINT FOR 2008
The first rounds of Teachers Institutes
<http://www.arrl.org/FandES/tbp/ti.html> for this summer have been
completed at the Parallax facility in Rocklin, California and at Pueblo
Magnet High School in Tucson, Arizona. According to Mark Spencer,
WA8SME, who coordinates the Education and Technology Program, there were
a few specific goals and objectives that were tried during these two
Teachers Institutes that were beyond the normal training curriculum: the
new 24-hour clock kit for the Soldering 101 unit, the radio telescope
unit and the BOT instructor's board.
These first Teachers Institutes had another first: a new instructor.
"All of the technical things worked out well," said Spencer, "and new
instructor Miguel Enriquez, KD7RPP, did a great job during his first
Teachers Institutes as the lead instructor. He will be a much needed and
welcome addition to the team."
Spencer said that 25 participating teachers from nine states attended
these two Teachers Institutes. These teachers represented four
elementary schools, 10 middle schools, 10 high schools and one
university. Of the 25, 14 were hams and 11 were non-hams. "This number
will shift because a number of non-ham participants are planning to, or
will be taking their ham license examinations in the near future,"
Spencer said.
Here are a few comments taken from what participants had to say about
their experience at the ARRL Teachers Institute:
* In the 34 years I've been teaching, I'd place this workshop as one of
the top two (the other being a really cool National Science Foundation
program in chemistry education at University of Oregon) that I've been
to. [The Teachers Institute] has inspired me to incorporate new material
in some of my classes. It has inspired me to broaden my own interests.
* Thanks again for ARRL support in the education gift department -- I
have new ideas on how to excite the kids as I go through the next year.
* Thanks for making a successful Institute experience for myself. You
are an excellent instructor. I hope the ARRL knows what they have in
you. Miguel was terrific also. Since I have come back [to my school], I
have two teachers who have expressed interest in attending one. I am
sure there will be several high school teachers in my district who
certainly would be interested in attending one. We have about 10 high
schools in the district and the TI is the institute for all of them.
* I appreciate all you've done for me through the Teachers Institute. It
has been a great learning process for me so far! I can't wait to share
this new knowledge with my students.
The next Teachers Institute is in Dayton, Ohio and is sponsored by the
Dayton Amateur Radio Association (DARA). The Teachers Institute season
will wrap up with two sessions in Newington at ARRL HQ during the first
week in August. Another instructor, Nathan McCray, K9CPO, will join
Spencer in Newington. The Teachers Institutes are just one part of the
ARRL Education and Technology Program, also known as "The Big Project."
For more information on this exciting program, please visit the ETP Web
site <http://www.arrl.org/FandES/tbp/>.
==> "THE DOCTOR IS IN" THE ARRL LETTER
This week, ARRL Letter readers are in luck! The ARRL's very own Doctor,
author of the popular QST column "The Doctor Is IN," answers a question
from his mailbag:
Question -- Don Christensen, W8WOJ, of Midland, Michigan, asks: I am not
a frequent user of 2 meters yet; however, I do want to be available for
emergency activity. I have a 2 meter handheld transceiver at the ready,
but wonder what the preferred procedure is to ensure that my
transceiver's nickel-cadmium (NiCd) batteries are charged and ready for
service.
The Doctor answers -- Unfortunately, NiCds might not be the best choice
for such an application with intermittent use.
If you run down a NiCd battery pack too low, any strong cells may
reverse charge the weaker cells, damaging the weak cells. On the other
hand they also don't like being constantly topped off without actual
hard use -- this promotes crystal formation, which can short out the
cells. They are most happy in applications in which they are used until
they discharge significantly, but not all the way and then are just
charged until fully recharged. Thus, the idea of having a spare pack
that is just kept charged up, but never actually used, is not a good
plan.
If you have two packs, they will both last longer if one is used until
it runs down and then you switch to the other and promptly recharge the
depleted one. Perhaps you can have the radio turned on a few days a week
monitoring the local repeater.
Many handheld radios offer battery cases for non-rechargeable Alkaline
cells that can be used in place of the rechargeable battery. These are a
good choice since they have long shelf life, generally have a longer
operating life than a charge with similar sized NiCds, and are usable in
field situations in which charging sources are not available.
Another choice, if you must have a rechargeable battery, is to use
sealed lead acid or gel cell batteries -- they love to be kept on a
float charge until needed, but are bulky and require a separate cable to
the handheld.
Be sure to read "The Doctor Is IN" every month in QST, the official
journal of ARRL, the national association for Amateur Radio. QST is just
one of the many benefits of ARRL membership. To join or renew your ARRL
membership, please see the ARRL Web page <http://www.arrl.org/join>.
==> THE JULY/AUGUST QEX IS HERE
The July/August issue of QEX is out, and it is full of theoretical and
practical technical articles that you don't want to miss.
In this issue, John Post, KA5GSQ, describes a crystal controlled 145 MHz
oscillator in "VHF Frequency Multiplication Using the SA602 IC." Wes
Hayward, W7ZOI, returns to the pages of QEX with an article about
"Oscillator Noise Evaluation with a Crystal Notch Filter." James
Koehler, VE5FP, shares "Some Thoughts on Crystal Parameter Measurements"
as he describes an automated system he built using a new DDS signal
generator and microcontroller circuit to make the measurements and
perform calculations.
Al Christman, K3LC, expands on the investigations in his July/August
2005 QEX article with "Ground System Configurations for Phased Vertical
Arrays." Contributing Editor L.B. Cebik, W4RNL (SK), looks at the
characteristics of one wavelength loops in "Antenna Options," and Ulrich
Rohde, N1UL, takes us on a tour of early RF oscillators in "From Spark
Generators to Modern VHF/UHF/SHF Voltage Controlled Oscillators."
Would you like to write for QEX? It pays $50 per printed page. Be sure
to check out the Authors Guide <http://www.arrl.org/qex/#aguide> for
more information. If you prefer postal mail, please send a business-size
self-addressed, stamped envelope to QEX Authors Guide, c/o Maty
Weinberg, ARRL, 225 Main St, Newington, CT 06111-1494.
QEX is edited by Larry Wolfgang, WR1B, and is published six times a
year. The subscription rate for ARRL members in the US is $24. For First
Class US delivery, the rate is $37 for members, $49 for nonmembers. For
international delivery via air mail, including Canada, the subscription
rate is $31 for members, $43 for nonmembers. Subscribe to QEX today
<http://www.arrl.org/qex>.
==> KANSAS TEEN NAMED 2008 YOUNG HAM OF THE YEAR
Emily Stewart, KC0PTL, a 17 year old from Leavenworth, Kansas, has been
named the 2008 Young Ham of the Year (YHOTY), announced YHOTY Award
Administrator Bill Pasternak, WA6ITF. Emily was selected based on her
commitment to Amateur Radio, along with leadership, outreach, and her
technical and public service achievements of the Amateur Radio Service
to others. She will receive her award as part of the Huntsville Hamfest.
More than two dozen young people were nominated for this award, now in
its 22nd year.
The daughter of Mike, K0MDS, and Sharon Stewart, Emily was first
licensed in August of 2003 when she was 12; she holds a General class
license. She said she was "so excited" when she got her ticket that she
wanted to share Amateur Radio and made presentations while in middle
school about ham radio. That led to getting active in her local radio
club and contributing articles to the club newsletter. Through her local
activities, Emily was appointed in 2006 as the first Assistant Section
Manager for Youth in the ARRL Kansas Section.
Emily has lived in Kansas for eight years. Prior to that, home was in
Germany, where her father was serving in the US military. She credits
her dad for sparking interest in Amateur Radio when they moved back to
the United States: "I thought it was really cool when he started talking
to people overseas in Europe. And Germany was still kind of home to me,
so when he started talking to people in Germany, I said I wanted to do
that, too."
Last August, while attending the ARRL Kansas State Convention, Emily
conducted a survey of attendees, asking how many had persuaded their
children or grandchildren to get involved in Amateur Radio. The slim
response led her and Brian Short, KC0BS, to develop the Kansas Legacy
Project. This project has three prongs: Pass the spirit and knowledge of
the Amateur Radio Service to a new generation; build ties between family
members using ham radio activities, and increase youth participation in
ham radio. Through her efforts, Emily hopes to encourage hams to get the
younger members of their families to get their ham licenses and get
involved. The project has netted good results so far, including one of
the youngest hams in the region to be licensed -- 7 year old Lucie
Goodhart, KD0DMO, who took a license class with her dad and passed her
Technician test last March.
Emily is also interested in the public service and storm spotting
portion of Amateur Radio: "My dad would sometimes take me out with him
to go storm spotting. I decided that I wanted to have some training, so
I took a couple of online courses in emergency communications. I will
either go out with my dad when we get called out to do some storm
chasing or I will stay at home and do spotting from home -- just in case
something really nasty does happen. Then that way I'm home with my mom."
Emily also has a deep interest in spaceflight and astronomy. One of her
cousins, US Astronaut Robert L. Stewart, was a crewmember onboard the
space shuttles Challenger and Atlantis. She has been attending Spacecamp
since she was in the 6th grade. "I'm also into astronomy and that's
another thing my dad and I do," said Emily. "We volunteer at an
observatory about an hour away from Leavenworth. We work on public
access nights."
This fall, Emily heads into her senior year at Leavenworth High School
where she is a member of the National Honor Society, Vice President of
the Fellowship of Christian Athletes and is a copy editor for the school
yearbook. Already a Registered Pharmacy Technician with the state of
Kansas, she is considering making pharmacy her career.
Emily is a member of the ARRL and the Kickapoo QRP Amateur Radio Club.
She's also a regular participant in Field Day, Kids Days and QRP events.
The 2008 Amateur Radio Newsline! Young Ham of the Year Award will be
presented on Saturday, August 16, 2008 at the Huntsville Hamfest in
Huntsville, Alabama. As the 2008 Young Ham of the Year, Emily will
receive a trip to the Huntsville Hamfest, ham radio equipment, various
books and magazines and an all-expense-paid week at Spacecamp in
Huntsville. Amateur Radio Newsline will award her with a commemorative
plaque at the ceremony.
The presentation of the YHOTY award is a regular feature of the
Huntsville Hamfest and has been made possible through the generosity and
kindness of the event's Planning Committee. This year's YHOTY award
ceremony will be hosted by Don Wilbanks, AE5DW, of Amateur Radio
Newsline, along with representatives of corporate underwriters
Vertex-Standard and CQ Communications, Inc.
The Amateur Radio Newsline "Young Ham of the Year" award program
(formerly the Westlink Report Young Ham of the Year Award), has been
presented annually since 1986 to a licensed radio Amateur Radio operator
who is 18 years of age or younger and who has provided outstanding
service to the nation, his/her community or the betterment of the state
of the art in communications through the Amateur Radio hobby/service.
==> TWO NEW COORDINATORS APPOINTED IN IARU REGION 2
IARU Region 2 President Reinaldo Leandro, YV5AMH, has appointed Dr Cesar
Pio Santos A., HR2P, of San Pedro Sula, Honduras, as IARU Region 2
Emergency Communications Coordinator; Santos will be taking over from
Rick Palm, K1CE. According to Leandro, Santos is a well-known emergency
expert in the region who helped to provide emergency communications and
medical relief in Honduras in the wake of Hurricane Mitch. He remains
active as a volunteer in his country's governmental emergency
communications institution and as a member of the Emergency
Communications Advisory Group (ECAG) for Area D (Central America) in
IARU Region 2.
Leandro also appointed Juan Munoz, TG9AJR, of Puerta Parada, Guatemala,
to succeed Bill Zellers, WA4FKI (SK) as the Region 2 Monitoring System
Coordinator. Munoz started as a shortwave listener in 1984 and obtained
his current license in 1989. Leandro said he is an active amateur on
nearly all bands and modes. As an avid contester, Munoz was a referee
during WRTC 2002 in Helsinki, Finland and has participated in the IARU
Monitoring System with Martin Potter, VE3OAT, since 2001.
==>SOLAR UPDATE
Tad "The Sun bursts through in unlooked-for directions" Cook, K7RA, this
week reports: Another week and still no sunspots. The 3-month moving
average for daily sunspot numbers that we began reporting toward the end
of Solar Cycle 23 seemed to retrospectively suggest that solar minimum
occurred last fall. The daily average for the 3-month period centered on
last October was nearly 3 -- or 2.967 to split some hairs. This is an
average of the 91 daily sunspot numbers from September 1-November 30.
Following that low, November was 6.85; from December 2007-April 2008,
the 3-month average drifted from 8.14-8.89. With remaining Solar Cycle
23 spots becoming increasingly rare -- and barely any Solar Cycle 24
spots -- this suggested solar activity was stalling out. Then, at the
end of June, a further decline when the 3-month average centered on May
dropped to 5.04. Sunspot numbers for July 3-9 were 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0 and
0 with a mean of 0. The 10.7 cm flux was 65.5, 65.4, 65.1, 66.1, 65.5,
65.5 and 66 with a mean of 65.6. Estimated planetary A indices were 4,
4, 7, 4, 3, 2 and 4 with a mean of 7. Estimated mid-latitude A indices
were 3, 3, 7, 5, 2, 1 and 3 with a mean of 3.4. For more information
concerning radio propagation, visit the ARRL Technical Information
Service Propagation page
<http://www.arrl.org/tis/info/propagation.html>. To read this week's
Solar Report in its entirety, check out the W1AW Propagation Bulletin
page <http://www.arrl.org/w1aw/prop/>.
__________________________________
==>IN BRIEF:
* This Weekend on the Radio: This weekend, the NCCC Sprint Ladder is
July 11 and the FISTS Summer Sprint is July 12. The IARU HF World
Championship is July 12-13. The SKCC Weekend Sprintathon and the ARCI
Summer Homebrew Sprint are July 13. The RSGB 80 Meter Club Championship
(SSB) is July 16 and the NAQCC Straight Key/Bug Sprint is July 17. Next
weekend is the NCCC Sprint Ladder on July 18. The Feld Hell Sprint and
the VK/Trans-Tasman 160 Meter Contest (CW) are July 19. Look for the DMC
RTTY Contest, the North American QSO Party (RTTY) and the CQ Worldwide
VHF Contest on July 19-20. On July 20, check out the RSGB Low Power
Field Day and the CQC Great Colorado Gold Rush. The Run for the Bacon
QRP Contest is July 21, the SKCC Sprint is July 23 and the RSGB 80 Meter
Club Championship (Data) is July 24. All dates, unless otherwise stated,
are UTC. See the ARRL Contest Branch page
<http://www.arrl.org/contests/>, the ARRL Contest Update
<http://www.arrl.org/contests/update/> and the WA7BNM Contest Calendar
<http://www.hornucopia.com/contestcal/index.html> for more info.
* ARRL Continuing Education Course Registration: Registration remains
open through Sunday, July 20, 2008 for these online course sessions
beginning on Friday, August 1, 2008: Technician License Course (EC-010),
Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Level 1 (EC-001), Radio Frequency
Interference (EC-006), Antenna Design and Construction (EC-009), Analog
Electronics (EC-012) and Digital Electronics (EC-013). Each online
course has been developed in segments -- learning units with objectives,
informative text, student activities and quizzes. Courses are
interactive, and some include direct communications with a
Mentor/Instructor. Students register for a particular session that may
be 8, 12 or 16 weeks (depending on the course) and they may access the
course at any time of day during the course period, completing lessons
and activities at times convenient for their personal schedule. Mentors
assist students by answering questions, reviewing assignments and
activities, as well as providing helpful feedback. Interaction with
mentors is conducted through e-mail; there is no appointed time the
student must be present -- allowing complete flexibility for the student
to work when and where it is convenient. To learn more, visit the CCE
Course Listing page <http://www.arrl.org/cce/courses.html> or contact
the Continuing Education Program Coordinator <cce@arrl.org&gt;.
* No ARRL Audio News July 25: There will be no ARRL Audio News on
Friday, July 25. The ARRL Letter will be available that day. ARRL Audio
News will return on Friday, August 1.
* International Space Station Goes Live with ARISS: July looks to be a
busy month for Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS)
<http://www.rac.ca/ariss/oindex.htm>. On Friday, July 4, members of the
Austin Amateur Radio Club (AARC) facilitated a successful ARISS contact
between the International Space Station (ISS) and Cub Scout Pack #304
and Blackland Prairie Elementary School in Round Rock, Texas. Before an
audience of 100, 10 Cub Scouts asked nearly 20 questions of Greg
Chamitoff, KD5PKZ. Chamitoff launched into space on May 31 on the space
shuttle Discovery and took over on the ISS for Garrett Reisman, KE5HAE.
Chamitoff is scheduled to return to Earth in November. An ARISS contact
took place with the National Agriculture Museum in Ottawa, Ontario,
Canada on Wednesday, July 9. Telebridge station W6SRJ in Santa Rosa,
California assisted with the contact. The museum is a large research
facility in the City of Ottawa covering more than 1000 years of major
contributions to agricultural progress. A public camp is part of the
overall operation of the farm. Another ARISS contact has been scheduled
with the Department of Astronomy and Space Sciences (DASS) at the Kuwait
Science Club in Safat, Kuwait on Monday, July 14 at 17:05 UTC.
Telebridge station WH6PN in Hawaii will assist with the contact. DASS
aims to spread scientific awareness in the fields of astronomy and space
sciences by actively engaging the public in exploring the cosmos. This
educational activity will educate young people about space stations,
satellites and ham radio. To date, there have been 352 ARISS contacts.
If a school in your area is interested in participating in an ARISS
contact, please visit the ARISS Web page for more information on how to
apply <http://www.rac.ca/ariss/ARISSapp16_Instructions.htm>.
* Fun at W1AW for Field Day 2008: Another Field Day has come and gone,
and just like amateurs all over the country, those who activated W1AW
not only took part, but had lots of fun during the 24 hour event.
According to W1AW Station Manager Joe Carcia, NJ1Q, W1AW made 1079
contacts using CW, SSB and RTTY on 160-2 meters. "The last time W1AW
broke the 1000+ QSO mark on Field Day was back in 2005 when 1100 QSOs
were made. But band conditions were slightly better then and we had more
operators on hand," Carcia said. Along with Carcia, ARRL Contest Branch
Manager Sean Kutzko, KX9X; DXCC Manager Bill Moore, NC1L; DXCC Assistant
Carol Michaud, KB1QAW, and Membership Manager Katie Breen, W1KRB, put
W1AW on the air for Field Day. Michaud's 9 year old daughter Lexie got
her first taste of ham radio, getting over a case of "mic fright" to get
on the air, too. This was Kutzko's first Field Day at W1AW. "Field Day
is always fun," he said, "but to be a part of W1AW during the ARRL's
biggest on-air event was a real honor. The mixture of experienced and
newly licensed operators sharing the fun and working hundreds of
stations is the essence of Elmering in Amateur Radio." Field Day is
always the fourth full weekend in June. In 2009, it will be June 28-29.
* IARU Member Societies On-The-Air for IARU HF World Championship: In
this weekend's IARU HF World Championship Contest, IARU Member Societies
from all around the globe will be active and operating with special call
signs <http://www.iaru.org/contest.html>. According to ARRL Contest
Branch Manager Sean Kutzko, KX9X, many of these call signs end in HQ,
designating a national headquarters station; these can be worked as
special multipliers in the contest. Kutzko said that IARU Administrative
Council members will also be on and can also be worked for special
multiplier credit. If you hear a station giving R1, R2, R3 or AC as
their contest exchange, that station represents part of the IARU
Administrative Council or regional Executive Committee. "The Daily DX,"
edited by Bernie McClenny, W3UR <http://www.dailydx.com/>, has compiled a
chart listing all of the known IARU Member Society call signs that will
be on-the-air for the contest; this listing is also available on the
ARRL Web site <http://www.arrl.org/news/10203>. The IARU HF World
Championship runs from 1200 UTC Saturday, July 12 to 1200 UTC Sunday,
July 13.
===========================================================
The ARRL Letter is published Fridays, 50 times each year, by the
American Radio Relay League: ARRL--the National Association for Amateur
Radio, 225 Main St, Newington, CT 06111; tel 860-594-0200; fax
860-594-0259; <http://www.arrl.org/>. Joel Harrison, W5ZN, President.
The ARRL Letter offers a weekly e-mail digest of essential and general
news of interest to active radio amateurs. Visit the ARRL Web site
<http://www.arrl.org/> for the latest Amateur Radio news and news
updates. The ARRL Web site <http://www.arrl.org/> also offers
informative features and columns. ARRL Audio News
<http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/audio/> is a weekly "ham radio newscast"
compiled and edited from The ARRL Letter. It's also available as a
podcast from our Web site.
Material from The ARRL Letter may be republished or reproduced in whole
or in part in any form without additional permission. Credit must be
given to The ARRL Letter/American Radio Relay League.
==>Delivery problems (ARRL member direct delivery only!):
letter-dlvy@arrl.org
==>Editorial questions or comments: S. Khrystyne Keane, K1SFA,
k1sfa@arrl.org
==>ARRL News on the Web: <http://www.arrl.org/>
==>ARRL Audio News: <http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/audio/> or call
860-594-0384
==>How to Get The ARRL Letter
The ARRL Letter is available to ARRL members free of charge directly
from ARRL HQ. To subscribe, unsubscribe or change your address for
e-mail delivery:
ARRL members first must register on the Members Only Web Site
<http://www.arrl.org/members/>. You'll have an opportunity during
registration to sign up for e-mail delivery of The ARRL Letter, W1AW
bulletins, and other material. To change these selections--including
delivery of The ARRL Letter--registered members should click on the
"Member Data Page" link (in the Members Only box). Click on "Modify
membership data," check or uncheck the appropriate boxes and/or change
your e-mail address if necessary. (Check "Temporarily disable all
automatically sent email" to temporarily stop all e-mail deliveries.)
Then, click on "Submit modification" to make selections effective.
(NOTE: HQ staff members cannot change your e-mail delivery address. You
must do this yourself via the Members Only Web Site.)
The ARRL Letter also is available to all, free of charge, from these
sources:
* ARRLWeb <http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/>. (NOTE: The ARRL Letter will
be posted each Friday when it is distributed via e-mail.)
* The QTH.net listserver, thanks to volunteers from the Boston Amateur
Radio Club: Visit Mailing Lists@QTH.Net
<http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/letter-list>. (NOTE: The ARRL
cannot assist subscribers who receive The ARRL Letter via this
listserver.)
Copyright 2008 American Radio Relay League, Inc.
All Rights Reserved

The ARRL Letter

The ARRL Letter offers a weekly summary of essential news of interest to active amateurs that is available in advance of publication in QST, our official journal. The ARRL Letter strives to be timely, accurate, concise and readable.

Much of the ARRL Letter content is also available in audio form in ARRL Audio News.

Material from The ARRL Letter may be republished or reproduced in whole or in part in any form without additional permission. Credit must be given to The ARRL Letter and The American Radio Relay League.

Back issues published since 2000 are available on this page. If you wish to subscribe via e-mail, simply log on to the ARRL Web site, click on Edit Your Profile at the top, then click on Edit Email Subscriptions. Check the box next to The ARRL email newsletter, the ARRL Letter and you will receive each weekly issue in HTML format. You can unsubscribe at any time.

Plain-Text

The ARRL E-Letter e-mail is also available in plain-text version:

Outlook Express

1. From the Inbox view, select the Tools menu and the Options selection.

2. Click the Read tab

3. Check the Read All Messages In Plain Text box. When you open the e-mail, it will be in plain text without images. Other e-mail programs may be able to make a Mail Rule for e-mail received from the address memberlist@www.arrl.org so that the plain-text-only display is selected automatically.

Outlook 2007

Use the same procedure as for Outlook Express, although the global option is under "Tools/Trust Center/E-mail Security".

Use the "Message text garbled?" link in the drop-down menu at the upper right of the displayed message block. pine, alpine Set "prefer-plain-text" in your ~/.pinerc configuration file: feature-list=..., prefer-plain-text, ...